Crocodile on the Sandbank

Image sourced from here

I was a bit excited for this book. Archaeology. Mystery. Victorian era. Sassy, societal and gender role shunning protagonist. Sounded like a rip roaring adventure through pyramids with parasols.

However, all I wanted to do was smack Amelia Peabody and her smug little face with her smug little parasol. The woman was insufferable. I am all for smartarse, outspoken, sarcastic, pushing society's role for you, female protagonists. But don't give it to me coated in smug.

I struggled through the book. In fact I put it down as I thought I was in a reading slump, but now I have finished the book, I think the book was the slump. But I waded through to show myself she got better and it was a fun little cozy that everyone enjoys. Nope. I just saturated myself in the smug.

And don't even get me started on the most forced love interest. I can sort of see what was being attempted but it was "sneaking" up on you from page 20 like a four year old hiding behind a pot plant, and wasn't convincing at all.

Urgh. Now I feel like I need a shower again.

Respected Sir, Wedding Song, The Search - #44

This book is three of Naguib Mahfouz's short novellas in one book. I bought this years and years ago after reading The Carpet Wars and took myself off to The Asia Bookroom here in Canberra to edumacate myself some more. I bought this and Geisha of Gion. This was the first one of them I ever opened.

Why did I buy them? No idea. I think the declaration of the winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature impressed me somewhat. And it has enough still to ensure I got another one of his books ready to read in case it was just this book. Because once again we have an author who has just written about mainly unlikeable characters that I can't give two shits about.

Respected Sir is about a guy who wants to be the best public servant he can be and gives up everything else in his life in order to be the best bureaucrat possible. Including being an interesting or personable person. Worked with too many public servants like that already thanks.

Wedding Song was the one I enjoyed the most I must say. It's the story of relationships between a theatre company and their employees. But it's told three times from different people's point of view. Interesting and different form of writing and story telling. Again, help if I cared for any of them.

The Search is about a man who goes to Cairo trying to track down his supposedly rich Dad who his Mum left while she was pregnant. As she's now dead, he just got out of prison and needs money or a stupid parent to support him. In the end he lets his penis himself to be manipulated by a beautiful woman.

Looking at them as a writing exercise made it more interesting. I can see why he won a Noble Prize. his writing is spectacular. I just think he needs to get better people to tell us about. I will be less forgiving with his next book.